The National Bank of the Republic of Abkhazia has issued a commemorative banknote of 500 apsars. The note has been issued in commemoration of "the 25th anniversary of the Victory in the Patriotic War of the People of Abkhazia". Date of issue: 29 September 2018, size of the banknote: 150 x 65 mm, mintage: 10,000 pieces.

From the press release: "The main image of the front side of the banknote is a portrait of the First President of the Republic of Abkhazia V. G. Ardzinba, underneath which there is an inscription “Vladislav Ardzinba”. In the background, warriors of the Abkhazian Armed Forces are depicted raising the banner of Victory. The images are imposed on the traditional Abkhazian ornament. From left to right in a semicircle, there are seven stars from the state flag of the Republic of Abkhazia. In the lower left corner, there is the state emblem. In the left corner, the denomination of “500 apsars” is indicated in two vertical lines.

The main image of the reverse side of the banknote is a map of the Republic of Abkhazia and enclosed in a decorative rim, a silhouette of the architectural complex of the capital of Abkhazia, Sukhum, against the background of a symbolic fortress tower with the state emblem of the Republic of Abkhazia. Along the circumference of the rim, there is an inscription in the Abkhazian language “Нагӡара ақәзааит Аԥсынра” (“May Abkhazia reach completion”). Underneath the image, there is the number “500”. A traditional ornament serves as the background of the composition. On the reverse side, the image of the seven stars is duplicated, and also the denomination in the right corner — 500 apsars.

The banknote has two serial numbers located on the reverse side of the banknote. They consist of a two-letter indication of the series and nine digits. The left number can be read on the long side of the banknote, the right one — on the short side.

In the lower right-hand side of the reverse side of the banknote, there is a QR code with a link to the Bank of Abkhazia website containing a description of the banknote’s security features.

The security features of the banknote include a common watermark and two types of protective fibres, a colour-shifting security element “HMC” (“hidden multi-colour”), the Orlov effect in offset and metallographic printing, graphic guilloche elements and elements of copy protection.

The banknote is in brown and green colours, and it is made out of white cotton paper."

Abkhazia, officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a de facto and partially recognized republic on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, in northwestern Georgia. The separatist Abkhazian polity, formally the Republic of Abkhazia, is recognised as a state by Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru and Syria. While Georgia lacks control over Abkhazia, the Georgian government and most United Nations member states legally consider Abkhazia part of Georgia, whose constitution designates the area as the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia.

The Board of the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus has decided to modify the existing banknotes while retaining the main images on the front and back sides, as well as their color and size. Some of the images will be modified. The new banknotes will be put into circulation from 2019-2020.

In accordance with the new edition of the rules of Belarusian spelling and punctuation on a 50-ruble note, the inscription "ПЯЦЬДЗЕСЯТ" will be changed to "PYAZJDZYAT".

The 5- and 10-rubles notes will have 2019 on the note and start circulation in that year. The 20- and 50-rubles banknotes will start circulation in 2020 and will have that year showing on the note.

"De La Rue, the world’s largest commercial designer and printer of currency, has been appointed by Sveriges Riksbank, the world’s oldest central bank, to produce the Swedish Krona for the next three years.

This prestigious contract is one of the most sought after in the industry and reinforces De La Rue’s position as the market leader in currency design and print. There is the potential for the contract to be extended for a further four years at De La Rue’s printing site in the UK."

My mother returned home from a trip to Ireland and Northern Ireland this week and brought some wonderful notes back to the Netherlands. Including three banknotes from Northern Ireland which was a country still missing from my collection!

The European Central Bank has presented the new banknotes of 100 and 200 euro. These are the last two banknotes of the second 'Europa' series since the 500-euro note won't be printed anymore. The new notes will start circulating from 28 May 2019.

From the press release: "The new €100 and €200 banknotes make use of new and innovative security features. Just like the other denominations, the new notes are easy to check when using the “feel, look and tilt” method. At the top of the silvery stripe a satellite hologram shows small € symbols that move around the number and become clearer under direct light. The silvery stripe also shows the portrait of Europa, the architectural motif and a large € symbol. The new €100 and €200 banknotes also feature an enhanced emerald number. While the emerald number itself is present on all the other notes of the Europa series, this enhanced version also shows € symbols inside the numerals.

The new €100 and €200 notes are a different size to the old €100 and €200 notes. Both denominations are now the same height as the €50 banknote. However, their length remains unchanged – the longer the note, the higher the value. Since the €50, €100 and €200 banknotes are now the same height, they can be more easily handled and processed by machines. They will also fit better in people’s wallets and last longer, as they will be subject to less wear and tear.

In addition to the security features that can be seen with the naked eye, euro banknotes also contain machine-readable security features. On the new €100 and €200 banknotes these features have been enhanced, and new ones have been added to enable the notes to be processed and authenticated swiftly. As Executive Board Member Yves Mersch highlighted in his speech unveiling the new banknotes, with the changeover to the new €100 and €200 the entire set of euro banknotes will continue to offer strong protection against counterfeiting. This makes euro banknotes even more secure, but also easier to check and handle."

The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank has announced plans for the introduction of a new banknote series of the Eastern Caribbean dollar. This currency is used by the independent states Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The other two countries which use the Eastern Carribean dollar are British overseas territories: Anguilla and Montserrat.

The new series will have a vertical orientation and will be made of polymer. The notes will be in the same denomination as the current series and will also keep the same color scheme. The designs on the note will be new however. The new notes will have some the usual elements we see in other polymer notes: holographic windows and embossed tactile geometric shapes for the visually impaired. The new notes will be issued mid-2019.

So what do you think about the design? Does it seem a bit... full perhaps?

The Czech National Bank has issued two updated versions of their 100- and 200-korun banknotes. For the most part the design remains the same but there have been some changes in the security features. The new notes circulate side-by-side with the existing ones. The versions of the 100-korun note that were put into circulation in 1995 and 1997 and the versions of the 200-korun note that were issued in 1996 and 1998 will remain legal tender and will be gradually replaced by the new version depending on their degree of wear.

The new Mexican banknote of 500 pesos is the first of a new family of notes that the Banco de México will be introducing over the next couple of years. Each banknote will show a different period of Mexico’s history, its flora and fauna and areas that have been declarated "Natural Patrimony of Humanity" by UNESCO.

50 pesos: Pre-Columbian era. Foundation of Mexico City, Tenotchitlan / Rivers and lakes – Ajolote (salamander), corn, Xochimilco. Expected to be released in the first half of 2022. Probably to be printed on polymer substrate.

100 pesos : Colonial era. Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, Monarch butterfly / Pine and holm trees, Monarch butterfly biosphere, Expected to be released in the second half of 2021. Probably to be printed on polymer substrate.

200 pesos: Independence War period, Miguel Hidalgo and José María Morelos / Eagle and saguaro cactus, El Pinacate and Desert of Altar biosphere. Expected to be released in the second half of 2019.

1,000 pesos: Revolution period. Portraits of Francisco I. Madero, Hermila Galindo and Carmen Serdán / Jaguar, ceiba and sapote, Mayan city of Calakmul. Expected to be released in first half of 2020.

2,000 pesos: Contemporary period. Portraits of Octavio Paz and Rosario Castellanos / Magueyero bat and agave, Agave field and old tequila installation. To be issued only if circumstances require it.

The Central Bank of Venezuela has finally issued new banknotes with new denominations in bolívares soberanos to curb the disastrous inflation which is crippling the country.

Just to keep reminding everybody: Venezuela could potentially be one of the richest countries in the world. Behold the power of complete mismanagement... Don't bother looking up what you could buy with these new notes: they will probably be worthless in a few months.

Hello, I'm Steven Bron and welcome to my blog on banknotes! Here you can find: breaking news, background articles and of course my personal collection (world notes or at least one from each country, commemorative notes and polymer notes).